PokeBleach: The Parasol Chronicle
by Pete the Rock
Summary: During an investigation to a string of Hollow attacks, Karin and Yuzu scope the shop, but when they open a cursed parasol, they're Mary Poppins-bound to nearby Pallet Town. Please R&R. Rated for violence and some language.
1. PokeBleach 1

Story Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Pokémon.

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_**PokéBleach: The Parasol Chronicles**_

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_PokéBleach 1_

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A city was under siege. A giant creature was ravaging through the streets, all with a white skull demon helmet and...why was there a hole through its body? The rampage of the creature raised havoc, destroying vendor stores and creating potholes for foot traffickers. "Souls...!" it growled with a haunting tone. The chaotic wake did not appear to have an end...until three brave youngsters in black feudal garbs stepped up. One was a spiky orangery blond hair male with...that's a huge sword! Another was a raven-haired female, a foot and a half shorter than the male, and a smaller sword in her hands. The last was a blood redhead male, hair in a porcupine-like ponytail, with a sword of unusual proportions. There appeared to be four spikes that were protruding from scales on the sword.

"Someone tell me that this Hollow just has a problem with human formality," the redhead sighed. That creature was a Hollow? The raven and blond warriors braced for the impact of the Hollow.

"Get ready, Ichigo," the raven warned the blond. The Hollow charged at the three like a bull bulldozing toward a matador. Ichigo and the raven rushed at the Hollow. It rose an arm, wanting to swipe the blacks.

"Rukia, back off!" Ichigo shouted. No avail. Rukia was decked with the arm swipe. She hit the street with a horrendous thud. She was out. "Great. Renji, cover me." Ichigo sprinted forward, reaching Rukia in mere record time. The Hollow tried to hammer a fist into Rukia, but Ichigo snagged her downed body, rolling away from the strike. Renji rallied inward, his fang-like sword cocked.

"Howl!" he roared. He swung his sword...which stretched far. And to think that Ichigo's sword was impressive with its size. The extension pierced through the hole in the Hollow, which screamed in such agony. The blade twisted, locking in place with the sword sticking in and out of both sides. Recovered, Rukia and Ichigo raced in, ready to finish the job. Rukia leaped up, slashing the Hollow's face. More screams protrude from the fiendish creature. Ichigo jumped at the Hollow, giving it a slash of its own, upward through the head. The mask was split. Before long, the Hollow mattered up. It disintegrated to nothing, not even the mask was available. Renji's sword retracted, as Ichigo and Rukia returned to their helpful comrade. "Well, aren't you glad you had me assist?" Cocky, wasn't he?

"Don't get too ahead of yourself. You were just in the neighborhood and got involved." Renji did not seem to enjoy the retort that Ichigo brought forth. "Still, thanks. We couldn't have beaten that Hollow without backup."

"About time you saw things my way." Rukia glared down a street where a rather small shack resided. Why would she stare down there?

'That's the tenth encounter where the Hollows targeted Uruhara Shop, this week,' she pondered in thought.. 'What's over there that are luring these spawns to the shack?' Ten times in a week. Some trend. No way that this was coincidental. That evening, Ichigo and Rukia had broken away from Renji, and headed home, this time, in street clothes: shirt and jeans. They didn't bother to check the shop, reasons unknown. They got inside a rather large house, where there were a pair of girls hanging out. Both didn't look like teens, but close. One was a girl who had the same raven black hair as Rukia. She wore a black basketball jersey over a white t-shirt, and shorts. She was laying on a couch in the living room, reading a comic of some sort. The other was a dark blond-haired, who was fixing dinner in the kitchen. She wore a pink spring dress, the whole shirt/skirt combo. She heard the footsteps of the combatants, and ran to see them.

"Welcome home, Ichigo," she beamed. "How are you and Rukia doing?" Both named turned to the youngster, not in too much of a mood to get excited. They had fought a tough Hollow.

"We're both exhausted, Yuzu," Ichigo groaned. "You and Karin behaving?" Karin looked over the couch, her face full of boredom.

"We're not the ones causing mischief, brother," she snorted. "You of all people should know that. Besides, Dad's out doing whatever the hell he wants." Dad's out. What about the mother of the three? Where was she? Ichigo glared at the rather nonspiritual female who was truthful. He switched back to Yuzu, request on hand.

"Yuzu, can you bring dinner to my room, please? I wanted to chat with Rukia about a few things." It had to be about the Hollow attacks that have targeted this shop in question.

"It'll be ready in a few minutes," she smiled.

"Thanks, Yuzu," Rukia greeted the response before joining Ichigo up to his bedroom. Watching the two going into his room, Karin got suspicious. What could arouse this rather stubborn girl? Quietly, she got to her brother's door, placing an ear toward the wooden frame.

"What do you mean in this past week?" Ichigo shrilled. See, it wasn't intercourse. It was a review.

"All of the Hollows have been after Uruhara Shop. It has been a fortunate streak that not only have we had help like Kenpachi yesterday, Renji today, or even Chad from the start, but we've eradicated all that have opposed us, especially that one who you sent to Hell, a few days back." Those two and their friends were definitely busy during the week. "I've tried getting word from the Soul Society about the matter. So far, no word on reasons." Karin grew more interested with the news about this unique shop. So did Ichigo.

"Well, what about the shop? Did Uruhara order something that was taboo?" Karin's curiosity about the shop heightened with every word that was spoken.

"He hasn't confirmed details. As far as we know, there might be a Whole who's been loitering around in bewilderment, but since it's him..."

"Right. I keep forgetting sometimes that he's a Soul Reaper, too." Soul Reaper? This stoked Karin even more.

'I knew it,' she realized. 'Those two have been working together to get rid of those mad specters, I've been able to see. Maybe I can help their investigation by going to this shop, before the next Hollow shows up.' She scurried into her room, next door in the hallway. She hoped to get a head start on the chance to stop the Hollow attacks before another one would attempt to ruin the party. The next morning, Karin was up and about. She exited the house and proceeded to the downtown district. She scouted the vicinities, trying diligently to locate the shop under fire. For a solid hour, she studied the potholes, a testament of the battles with the Hollows. That's when she jerked her head to the shack. 'Is that Uruhara Shop?' She strolled closer and closer to the shack. As she arrived at the street, across from the shack, she spotted someone coming, taking action to hide. It was Renji, who was in street clothes. He was getting to the shop with a cellphone in hand. Was Uruhara Shop a cellphone store? The sliding doors opened, where a rather dusty man in a pale green robe and a green/white-striped shagged top hat. Who could that be?

"Renji, do you know what time it is?" he grubbed while paper fanning himself. Renji wasn't too worried about the early morning visit.

"I just got done talking with Rukia and wanted to see what you might have that are guiding the Hollows here," he explained. The man sighed, still sleepy. He didn't have any energy to argue.

"You know, you're the eighth person who's inspected what I have in here. Why do you guys think I have Hollow bait?" Hollow bait...good one. The man allowed Renji inside. To Karin, her door of opportunity was opened as well. She raced into the shack. There was no light, nor Renji. She was alone. She began her snooping, hoping to find the item in question. Before she could start, a tap on her shoulder caused her to jump. She turned to where that tap poked her. Yuzu?

"Yuzu?" she shrieked quietly. "What are you doing here?" Yuzu's face was of soulful concern.

"Well, someone has to keep an eye on you, sister," she provided. "Besides, I'm the one who should be asking that question." Karin didn't feel too comfortable with extra luggage by her side.

"I thought I could help Ichigo with the specters that try to get here. I doubt you could be helpful, since your spiritual senses aren't as strong as mine, or even Ichigo's." Ouch! Karin moved on. Regardless of what her sister pointed out, Yuzu had to assist. For a minute, they surveyed the aisles, when Yuzu spotted something: a paper-made parasol. As she studied this rain-guard, she saw a sticker that was striped yellow and black on the wooden handle. This appeared to be something that had warning signs for reasons detrimental to what's been happening during the week.

"Karin, over here." Karin heard Yuzu's call, getting to her side and the parasol, which she picked up.

"Good eye, Yuzu. Guess you can be helpful at times. Though, why is there a 'Caution' sticker on the handle?" Good question. Yuzu had a hypothesis with using the parasol.

"Perhaps, if we get rid of this, those specters will stop coming here." It was a thought, though too bizarre to comprehend. Karin had doubts about how a simple parasol could be a lure for the Hollows.

"How can something like this bring the specters here?" They say that opening an umbrella, or parasol, inside would be bad luck. With a caution sticker... Karin opened the parasol. Not a good idea. A whirlwind began to tornado itself around the sisters. Struck with fear of being blown away, Yuzu grasped the parasol. There was a 'caution' sticker on the parasol. Items in the store were being blown toward walls, some shattering on impact. Both girls were in big trouble as they vanished in a veil of thin air, along with the parasol. The store was like a war zone. Merchandise scattered, shelves bared from the winds...messy, messy, messy. Renji heard the sisters' screams for help, got to the store lobby. Boy, to him, it was like a tornado blew through there. He didn't know that an actual tornado had shown up.

"Whoa, and I thought Ichigo was destructive," he awed. "Did Ikkaku come to visit?" No. So, what happened to Karin and Yuzu? They were back outside...unconscious. Did the power that came from the parasol provide such force to render the sisters immobile? And where was the parasol? A shadow emerged, covering the girls from sunlight. Then, a green, fingerless gloved hand popped out, putting its fingers on Karin's neck. Did he feel something? Were the sisters okay?

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TO BE CONTINUED...


	2. PokeBleach 2

_PokéBleach 2_

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In the house that Ichigo resided, his homecoming from school, due to the grayish uniform he and a new redhead, rather busty girl were wearing, was about to get the ultimate wakeup call. The two teens entered the front door. That's when... "Ichigo!" loudly echoed a much older man as he...HEAD'S UP, ICHIGO! An older, raven-haired man came flying at Ichigo, feet first in a jump-kick. Ichigo saw the man, but instead of moving out of the way, he snagged the man's feet. The man's feet were stopped, but his body managed forward progress as the boy yanked him from the air...and onto his back on the floor, massively hard in a power bombing slam. Ichigo did not appreciate someone trying to harm him. He had no clue that his sisters, Karin and Yuzu, were missing. Sneaking from the house in the early morning, Karin got to the Uruhara Shop to help Ichigo and Rukia with the investigation of all the Hollow attacks. Worried about her independent sister, Yuzu trailed far behind Karin, where a parasol with a yellow/black striped caution sticker was found. When Karin opened the parasol, they were blown to a different area, and the shop was wrecked.

"Dad, you should know better than a full-frontal assault," Ichigo growled. "And especially when I have company." Ichigo's dad? Surprisingly, the dad recovered in a flash and back on his feet.

"Ichigo, where are my daughters?!" That was even more of a surprise for the blondish one. Ichigo couldn't believe that his own father had to ask about Karin and Yuzu being gone. "You haven't seen them, have you?" However, instead of going into panic mode like his dad, Ichigo was furious.

"Wasn't it your job to watch them?!" The redhead seemed to think that Ichigo's dad was concerned greatly about the girls.

"Ichigo, your father doesn't deserve the blame you're giving him," she proclaimed. Ichigo was more into dismay. This very developed female was backing his father's claim. The dad was ecstatic that the redhead was supporting him in what was a family crisis.

"Thank you, Ms. Inoue," he cried as he...whoa! His head dove into her chest, splitting her uprights. "You don't know how difficult it takes to get news into my son's head!" Ms. Inoue freaked, seeing the father inside her bosoms. Ichigo had to stop that.

"Out of there, you damn pedophile!" he barked as he punted his father's face. Man, talk about a dysfunctional family. Ichigo's father was out. Ms. Inoue became mystified about how Ichigo's family had been like this.

"Are you guys always this rough on each other?" she questioned. The way Ichigo's father acted injured...yeah he ain't getting up for a while.

"Look at it, this way, Orihime. If this happened in America, the three of us would be in foster care, while he would go under parental classes." You sure? "Still, if Dad's right...where could have Karin and Yuzu disappear to?" That's where the story was heading to. Some distances away, Karin and Yuzu were still in some unconsciousness. That's mostly the bad news. The sisters were in a bed, tucked in. Where were they? Before long, Yuzu woke up. She rubbed her eyes of "sleeping" dust.

"Oh, goodness," she moaned. "What just happen?" You got blown from the shop. She looked around realizing that she's in a bedroom. Considering what happened at the shop, she thought that the shop owner saw her and Karin on the floor, thus helping them into the room. "That shopkeeper's pretty mad for the destruction we caused. I guess we have no choice but to payback the mess." She walked out of the room, fully expecting to confront the shopkeeper. Stepping out of the room, she saw a staircase, leading downstairs. Immediately, she thought something was amiss. "The shop didn't have a second floor. Were we gusted from the shop by that weird parasol?" Her voice echoed downstairs, where someone...or something heard it. Two weird mice got to the base of the stairs. One was a yellow, larger than normal mouse with circular red cheeks and a lightning-shaped tail. The other was a blue, armless mouse with white circular cheeks and a bouncy blue ball for a tail. Yuzu was shocked to see such creatures. "What's going on?" Before she could think about retreat...

"Pikachu, Azurill, what's up?" another young female voiced. Come again? The creatures sounded the new female over to the staircase, noting that Yuzu was awake. There, another redhead female, nowhere near the developed Orihime, showed up. She was wearing a yellow track suit with a reddish mid-section, and her hair had a side ponytail. Her emerald green eyes saw Yuzu, almost relieved. What for? "Oh, you're awake. Thank goodness." Yuzu had to have known that she wasn't where she came from.

"Where...am I? Heaven?" Uh, not quite. The redhead thought what happened to Yuzu was traumatic.

"You okay? You still look very pale when Ash and Pikachu found you and your friend on the north side." Friend? And what's Pikachu and Ash?

"I think so." The mice seemed to doubt her answer, and replied with their motions. Those noises triggered someone else to join in.

"What's going on, Misty?" a male, this time, had asked. The redhead heard her name, turning to the sound and eying, yet, another raven-haired male. Two of them in fact. The tall boy was in a blue sweat-tee, while the smaller boy was in glasses as well as a green polo t-shirt and brown slacks. The blue shirted boy got to look at Yuzu. "Oh, you're up. You good?" Yuzu nodded. "That's good to know. What about your friend?" Yuzu was about to allow everyone that Karin wasn't a friend.

"Karin is actually my twin sister." Family. Eyes shot wide at the truth.

"Twin sister?" Misty repeated in awe. Another nod was bobbed. No one believed that she and Karin were twins. Disbelief, or dismay clouded the crowded cramper. That's when the smaller boy had a thought.

"Ash, Misty, let's not push the subject," he suggested. Yuzu felt clued in. The boy in blue was the one who helped her and Karin to shelter. This Ash. Well, listening to the younger soul, Ash and Misty decided to drop the discussion.

"Okay, Max," Ash agreed. His attention was turned back to Yuzu. "It's alright. Make yourself at home." Yuzu obliged. That was a thoughtful gesture.

"Thanks for your offer," she quivered her reply. She scoped down at the mice that were still hanging around, when Misty risen the blue mouse to her chest, walking away from the stairs to give room for Yuzu to feel at ease. That's when she turned to Max, question in hand.

"Say, Max," she called. "When is May coming over? Since you're here..." Who's May? Max nervously itched the back of his head for some sort of reason. Ash knew something that Max held back, while poor Yuzu seemed lost within the discussion.

"Who's May?" Ash decided to be the interpreter for the sister of a Soul Reaper.

"It's somewhat like you and Karin," he tried to clarify. "May's Max's older sister." He switched back to the topic Misty opened. "And something tells me that you sneaked away from Petalburg City with Prof. Birch to come here, away from your parents and sister, isn't that right?" If there was a needle in this bundled haystack, Ash had located it. Of course, Max's face looked like he didn't mind his secret of his visit.

"Come on, Ash," he squealed. "Can you really blame me?" Depends. "I'm so anxious to see all the Pokémon that you've caught over your journey. I mean you're always with Pikachu." The yellow mouse nodded to that notion. So, that's Pikachu, meaning that the mouse in Misty's arms was Azurill.

"We'll get to it, once Karin is up and about." Yuzu had her doubts. Well, when you're a twin sibling, you tend to know what to expect.

"Karin's more of a free spirit, independent kind of woman," she displayed. Well, her words seem to stir Karin up.

"And proud of it," she voiced. Ash and Yuzu heard the female's virtuous tone and turned back upstairs. Karin was descending to the group, not with a happy-go-lucky smirk. "Although, I'll bite. What's with this place? Last I remembered, I was in that shop when I happen to open that parasol." Talk about not wasting time on details, Karin explained to all about what happened before now. Ash and Max just had to ask that question.

'A parasol?' Ash wondered. As if backtracking to before now, himself, he wondered about what he saw when he helped the sisters from harm. 'Was that what Karin had when she and her sister fell?' The parasol, somewhere around there?

"Let me guess, you bought an umbrella on a rainy day, opened it inside so you prevent yourselves from soaking, when a tornado came up-" WHACK! Karin had to silence how wrong Max was, but instead of verbally, she clocked the youngster on the crown of the head with an overhead punch. Girl, there are more subtle ways to get your point across. "OW! That hurt!" He ha, Max got hurt by a girl! Okay, enough with the teasing. Ash did listen and tried a more reasonable point of view.

"She did say parasol, and notably, parasols and umbrellas are rather different." As Ash was setting the records in proper order, Karin sensed something about Ash. From her eyes, there was a blue light that cocooned around this raven-haired young man.

'This man,' she muttered in her mind. 'I sense a strong spiritual power from him. Not quite as strong as Ichigo, but it's somewhere amongst powers that I don't think any specter could stand up against.' After he was done ranting on Max, Ash noticed that hard, awe-filled stare from Karin. He didn't get the same sight that she did.

"What's up, Karin? Do I already have a peach-fuzz on my chin?" As if acting out of spite, Ash rubbed a finger on his chin, making sure his chin was squeaky clean. Karin snapped out of it, shaking her head.

"No, my eyes were deceiving me." Ash stopped feeling his own face, thank goodness.

"Oh." He chose to go back to what happened with Ichigo's sisters. "So, what happened at the shop?" Karin did feel responsible for performing the independent investigation to the Uruhara Shop, and was ready to allow Ash know, acting trustworthy.

"You see, my older brother is a Soul Reaper, a guy who trots around town, killing off hideous specters which they call Hollows and maintaining peace in our city. During the week, I overheard that a certain shop was frequently targeted, in which not only my brother and his partner in crime, but I also suspected that there was something in the shop that was luring these Hollows to the place. Just as I started, Yuzu came around and volunteered her services as help. That's when we found the parasol. My brother warned me about not opening anything with an overhead cover, but seeing a caution sticker got me and Yuzu suspicious. Let's just say, I should have listened to Ichigo." She admitted her own mistake of opening a parasol or umbrella, it didn't matter. Bad luck breezed in and blew out the sisters. They had no idea that a tall brunette female adult overheard Karin's story. Her hair was in a more normal ponytail, while sporting a pink t-shirt and long skirt. Why would she be interested in a child's story? Was it something that Karin mentioned?

'Their brother is a Soul Reaper?' she thought while listening in the kitchen. It looked like there was an issue that she would know about. 'If those two find out who I am...I just hope they know Byakuya.' Byakuya? Something bigger was brewing, and it ain't the tea kettle boiling water. What secret would involve Byakuya and her? Keeping any composure, she entered the frame with most of the youngsters. Misty and Azurill were somewhere else. "Say, Ash, do you mind bringing your new friends over to see your Pokémon at Prof. Oak's lab, while I get lunch ready?" Ash smiled to say that he didn't mind one bit.

"Not at all, Mom," he gleed. Max and Karin seemed ready to go and see some of Ash's Pokémon. Yuzu didn't seem so triggered to eye unusual creatures. She felt like doing something else.

"I wanna help you with preparations, instead," she proposed. The mother thought that help wasn't a problem.

"Okay, dear," she accepted. It was, as if, this was planned. She could get some information from Yuzu about her Soul Reaper brother. However, while secrets may have been hidden amongst each other, the parasol mystery still lingered toward why the sisters of a Soul Reaper were sent from the Uruhara Shop to Ash's home.

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TO BE CONTINUED...


	3. PokeBleach 3

_PokéBleach 3_

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The shop was a disaster. Merchandise strewn over walls, floors...it was a mess. Ichigo, Rukia and Orihime came over to see if Karin and/or Yuzu came here. They did, and well...it's pretty obvious what happened. "And I thought I was disorganized at school," Ichigo compared. He turned to Rukia for some reason. "Are you sure this is where Yuzu and Karin came to?" Rukia concentrated on something since her eyes were closed. Finally, something came to her senses.

"I do sense a rather weak strain of spiritual energy, but whether or not it's your sisters'," she observed. She couldn't finish because a paining yell crashed her focus. Then, a redhead little boy was flung over the three as he screamed in agony. Flying over the three, he smacked the pavement outside where he made a rather sick thud.

"Boss?" he whined. Ichigo and Rukia sighed, as if this was coming.

"Jinta's slacking off again," Ichigo grumbled. Guess this boy didn't like to work at the shop where the dusty man was not in the mood for tea.

"I think Renji's take on what happened here is more accurate," he voiced, causing the other three to glare his direction. "A bomb did sound unlikely." That's when he saw Rukia, thinking that she knew what to bring up. Acting as if the news was untrue about the shop having something to attract Hollows, he wanted to come clean again. "Rukia, I've already told you, I've got no Hollow bait." Rukia wasn't here about baiting things like Hollows.

"Urahara, did a pair of little girls come here?" she questioned. Urahara felt more in the dark. He had no clue that the sisters were monkeying around his store.

"First, accusations about my shop having a Hollow lure and now Ichigo's bratty sisters? Honestly, Ichigo, you can't watch over your siblings, even if your life depended on it?" Ichigo didn't appreciate the tone that fouled from his chapped lips. He connected fist to cheekbone, flooring the shop-owner.

"Sorry if my school doesn't feel the same way about my sisters." Urahara rose to a seating position, rubbing the bruise from the punch.

"I was being honest." He got to his feet, ready to address more. "Anyway, as you can already tell, my shop is a wreck. Ururu and Tessai have inspected the damage, calculating about 350,000¥, in addition to one item unaccounted for." An item? Was it the parasol?

"What's the item?" Orihime wondered. Urahara gave a clipboard to her, which read the items destroyed like shelves, candy dispensers...until she saw the note reading "ITEMS MISSING: 1 MARY PARASOL (STICKERED)." A Mary parasol? And what did it mean stickered? "It says that the missing Mary parasol had a sticker. Is it alright if we get the detail?" Urahara seemed willing to talk about the parasol that had disappeared from the store.

"That parasol is cursed. Anyone with a low spiritual sense would be sent to far away places. They could be stuck in odd places like say Pluto, or a much more known case to ours, the Soul Society." Well that doesn't really explain why you had one in the first place. Ichigo hadn't relinquished his anger. His sisters were in apparent danger. He clutched Urahara's robe, holding his face to each other.

"You had a cursed parasol this whole time that I could jack down your throat, and blow your damn begotten mind from this crap shoot?" Ichigo growled. The grip frightened Urahara, fearing that his lights would be shut off.

"Hey, hey, easy, Ichigo. It's not like they're dead. I'm sure the tech people can find them. I wanted to get that removed when I felt the power that parasol had inside, which I've still had for the past week." Past week? During the same time as all those Hollow encounters? Ichigo reorganized his thoughts, believing that the cursed parasol was what all those Hollows were after. What reasons, he would need to ask.

"Ichigo, if he had the parasol during the fights with the Hollows, then..." Rukia paused when Ichigo threw down a nod. Releasing his grip on Urahara, he planned his next move.

"Let's make our way to the Seireiti, and see about finding this cursed parasol," he suggested. "We find the parasol, we're more than likely to find Karin and Yuzu."

"Right," the girls answered. Hearing about the disappearances of the sisters, Jinta raced back inside the shop, wanting in on the search party.

"If you're going to find Yuzu, let me in, too!" he roared confidently. He was about to be denied, because Urahara and Rukia gazed fiercely at the pompous redhead. Something had to have happened that those two didn't want him to join.

"You have to clean the shop before we all get back, alone," Urahara ordered. "If not, I'll punish you by training Kenpachi." Jinta's eyes shot wide, scared about the consequences. This Kenpachi didn't sound too friendly. Even Ichigo felt sympathy for what may befall him.

"Knowing how much an animal he is, I'd get this store cleaned on the double," he nicely warned. Oh sure, Ichigo, rub salt on his wounded pride, why don't you.

"Okay, okay!" Jinta freaked. He picked up a broom, sweeping madly. Let's hope it's done before they return. Meanwhile, Karin was walking alongside Ash, Misty and Max over to where Ash could show off creatures, known as Pokémon. Karin's twin sister, Yuzu, stayed at the house, helping Ash's mother, who seemed to know something about Soul Reapers, since big brother Ichigo was one of them. They were strolling down a dirt path, where these so-called Pokémon like Azurill, who was in Misty's arms, and Pikachu, perched on Ash's shoulder, would be.

"I'm sure Prof. Oak will allow you to see some of the Pokémon at his ranch," Ash confidently smirked. Karin sensed some sort of energy within Ash. Even though she claimed that there was no comparison to her bigger brother, she couldn't help but stay close by. That got on the nerves of Misty and Max, staying close to their good friend.

"I don't get why that stuck-up little girl has to be so attached to Ash like that," Misty complained. Max kept observing the young Kurosaki, noticing hard-nosed glares, as if there was a secret that Karin saw.

"I think there's something about Ash that we don't know about," Max gawked in curiosity. It can't be anything too big, right? "And keep in mind, she did say that her brother, Ichigo, is a Soul Reaper. For all we know, she might be a scout, looking for new recruits." Hearing his friends, Ash turned as if he didn't believe that about Karin and Yuzu.

"Karin, a Soul Scout?" Ash relabeled in question. "Have you been watching sci-fi movies, before I met you?" Science fiction movies that revolve around reapers? Don't you mean something like horror films? Karin decided to back Max's claim of seeing what the others wouldn't.

"Well, our family lineage has a history of seeing spirits like, say, Max and Misty see you," she tried to discuss. Her words didn't quite make sense, forcing everyone to freeze their feet.

"I'm sorry, Karin. What was that?"

"I mean...well, as a Kurosaki, I see ghosts or spiritual anomalies, reasons unknown. However, unlike myself and Ichigo, Yuzu doesn't have the same senses, if any." Poor Yuzu. Max began to feel sorry for the young sister. Ash, on the other hand, was piecing together what abilities she and Ichigo had together.

"Let me make sure I got it: you and Ichigo sense the paranormal, like dead people." Wait...did Ash see _The Sixth Sense_? It could explain how he determined what Karin had. At least no one had to steal Hayley Joel Osmett's famous line. Karin seemed aware that Ash knew what she was addressing while Misty, Pikachu and Max became hinted with fear. Dead people would freak the spirit from one's body. Ash seemed mildly flinched.

"More or less." Ash's composure made Karin awe at him. From the description, spirits tend to exit its vessel when that vessel expires. So where do the Hollows come from? Before anyone could fathom an intriguing point about ghosts or Hollows, an engine was heard. The sound made all turn to the direction of the hard-running heart of a vehicle, which Max was able to recognize.

"I know that four-by-four engine!" he excitedly cheered. The group watched from where the engine echoed. Sure enough a forest green jeep came flying over a bump on the road. The jeep spotted the kids and skidded along the dirt road, twisting and tires providing little traction, until the jeep came to a complete stop. Anyone hurt? A brunette girl was hopping out of the jeep in mostly red: red spandex t-shirt, red bandanna, white gloves with black fingers, and black shorts.

"Jeez, Prof. Birch, you need to watch your speed," she argued on her driver. The driver, this Prof. Birch, was a rounded brunette man with a short beard, teal shorts and sandals. From the professor's view, the girl's abatement rolled off his husked shoulders.

"Sorry about that, May," he humbly apologized. May? Max's sister? May hopped out seeing the group, but mostly at Max. Why?

"I'm not as mad at Prof. Birch as I am with you, Max. Why did you sneak away from home?" Max was under pressure as Ash and Karin watched.

"Y-y-you see, May," Max stuttered. "Prof. Oak had called me about helping with some of the Pokémon, which Prof. Birch brought me to see, and it so happened that as Birch dropped me off at Ash's house, he got a call from his own lab, and that's when I saw Ash carrying her and his Grovyle carrying her sister." May acted surprised. Karin was a little stunned to learn about something called Grovyle carried Yuzu while Ash whisked her to shelter.

"Whoa. Talk about coincidence. Sorry, I guess I should be more trustful to Prof. Birch." Birch smiled, as if bygones were bygones.

"Don't worry about it," he happily chirped. That's when he and May spotted Karin by Ash, in some deep thought. She had to be thinking about what happened between opening the cursed Mary parasol and waking up in a bedroom in Ash's house.

'I get it, now,' she pondered. 'Yuzu and I were blown from the shop because of the parasol that appeared to take us across some sort of dimensional screw-up. I think that's when Ash spotted both of us laid out, thus taking us to his pad. I guess my only question is whatever happened to that strange parasol?' As she got deeper into her brain drain, others looked on, wondering if Karin was okay.

"Uh, Karin?" Ash opened his mouth. "You okay?" She heard Ash, but reclined to speak up about it. Why was it?

"Ash, do you know where the parasol is?" She was wondering about the cursed parasol. Did she feel homesick? Ash gazed toward trees in the far distance. Was it somewhere over in that direction?

"I remember seeing something falling out of your hands when you fell from the sky on Route One. It could be that parasol that somehow brought you here." Karin had the look of relief in her eyes. For someone with a rambunctious attitude and free-spirited upbringing, her kindness to Ash seemed to blossom like mayflowers.

"Ash, what are you guys talking about?" May asked. Ash and Karin noticed May's unusual glare, thinking that there was something going on between them. Karin had observed May, detecting nothing.

'She doesn't have any spiritual energy,' she viewed. 'Neither does Max or Misty, or this Prof. Birch. Pikachu has some spiritual energy, but Ash...something happened to him where his energy had to spike.' Could this be what she was talking about before? This seeing of anomalies? Nothing in May, Max, Misty or Birch, but Ash had lots? That's not fair to the rest. Back at the issue at hand, Ash wasn't too concerned about the issue with Karin...not yet.

"Hey, let's talk about it when we get to Oak's lab," Ash dodged. "Okay?" Knowing that there was a big situation to explain, it would be better that everyone had a chance to hear Ash and Karin out.

"Don't see anything wrong by it," Misty trusted. Birch also agreed.

"Yeah, I'll go on ahead and meet you all there," he said as he got to his jeep. He drove off, leaving the kids to trudge the rest of the way. They would need a nice walk. Meanwhile back at Ash's house, sandwiches and fruits were being placed on a large tray as Ash's mother and Yuzu were making final touches. The mother was impressed with Yuzu's culinary skills, like her own mother was as exceptional.

"How many more berry sandwiches, Mrs. Ketchum?" Yuzu gleefully asked.

"One more should do it," Mrs. Ketchum answered with the same beamed feeling. "And besides, it's alright if you call me Delia."

"Sure thing, Mrs. K- Delia." Both shared giggles, then back to work. Delia seemed convinced about what Karin pointed out when she and Yuzu recovered from being blown from the Urahara Shop. Yuzu's brother, being a Soul Reaper, meant that she had connections to places that Soul Reapers would know about. Then, there's that thing about Byakuya that was rung up on her mind.

"Say, Yuzu, does Ichigo know anyone by the name Byakuya Kuchiki?" She didn't waste time. Yuzu became befuddled. She appeared to have no clue on a name like that.

"I can't really say. I don't know about you, but Karin's stories can be out there." She _did_ have no clue on it. That had to bite. Delia gazed hard at the young blond that her son brought home, thinking that this was just a plain young girl who got caught with someone who was more spiritually superior.

'Her spiritual powers are very poor. Considering that they're twins, I would suspect that they would both have substantial spiritual awareness. Karin has it, but either Yuzu's is so poor that Hollows can't take her soul or it's dormant to protect her from an immense surge of energy to be leaked.' Spiritual powers dormant? That's when Yuzu had a stint in thought. What was it?

"Although, there is someone with the name, Kuchiki, that hangs around Ichigo. I think her name was Rukia." The one with Ichigo and Orihime at this point? Delia was a bit surprised with this news. What reason?

'Rukia? I think I've heard that name before. That's Byakuya's little sister...I haven't told Ash yet about family Soul Reapers and about Rukia being an aunt.' Wait...Rukia was Ash's aunt, meaning that Byakuya's Ash's father? Was Delia a Soul Reaper, herself?

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	4. PokeBleach 4

_PokéBleach 4_

* * *

Ash, Karin, Misty, May, Max and Prof. Birch were over at a white super sized house with windmills on each side. They were in a room where a technology geek's wet dream would be realized, because there was plenty of computer equipment inside. However, the independent Kurosaki, along with everyone else were at a table where there were three creatures, an aged, gray-haired man in a lab coat, like what Birch had on, except this old man was a lot slimmer. There was also a younger man, who was in a light bluish-green t-shirt, orange shorts and red headband. Everyone observed the eating habits of a blue turtle with a curled tail and red shell, an orange lizard with a flame on the tip of its tail, and a small blue four-legged creature with a giant green bulb on its back. "Man, they're sure hungry," Misty chuckled. The pellet-shaped snacks were being devoured in an impressive duration. Karin plucked a piece from the turtle's tray, which the creature got upset.

"It's okay, Squirtle," she tried to apologize by placing the piece back on the tray. "I was just looking at it." In a pout, Squirtle wasn't satisfied with the way she acted in front of it.

"That Squirtle is a bit sensitive," the new man sighed with a smile. Sensitive? Squirtle was really showing it.

"Reminds me of Pikachu when we first started our adventures," Ash brought up. May and Max were a bit surprised with that news. Pikachu and Ash weren't always on the same page the entire time.

"You mean you and Pikachu got into squabbles yourselves?" May hiccuped. Ash nodded to confirm the notion of non-perfected friendships.

"Just because we've been together since the beginning of my career of training, doesn't mean we always saw eye to eye. Since almost departing for good after rescuing a stock-load of wild Pikachus, we've been the best of friends." Aw, that was touching. The siblings and Karin smiled to the history of the boy/mouse combo. That's when the three creatures began to yawn. They were feeling sleepy.

"Tracy, I think it's time to get them back into their balls," Misty suggested to the headband teen. He looked at the tired faces of the three, agreeing with Misty.

"Yeah, I think so, as well," he replied. That's when Max decided to voice his own opinion.

"Oh, may I return them?" me excitedly asked. For a moment, Misty and Tracy were surprised to hear their little friend wanting to return the creatures to their balls. Someone else decided to answer with the brightest of smiles.

"Of course, Max," the gray haired acknowledged. "Go right ahead."

"Thanks, Prof. Oak."Max grabbed two red/white balls with buttons in the middle and pointed it at the creatures. "Okay Charmander, Bulbasaur. Time to go back inside." That's when two beams shot out from the button of the balls, hitting the lizard and the bulbed creature. Before long, they vanished and the beams retreated back to the balls. Max placed the balls back, only to grab one more. "Okay, Squirtle. You're next." Squirtle didn't really like the scene. The two others were gone, and it didn't want to be alone. It was in fear, and dove into May's unsuspectingly opened arms.

"Okay, easy Squirtle. It's okay," she tried to ease the hugged turtle. "Your safe." Squirtle seemed to scared of going into it's ball, tears began to soak May's t-shirt. Karin came over, petting Squirtle's head gently.

"You'll see them, again, soon enough," she promised. Squirtle began to ease the crying and look at the young girl. It slowly nodded, trusting Karin. Ash had been astounded with Karin's personality, considering what the more shy Kurosaki, Yuzu, described her before.

"I think you've contradicted Yuzu's explanation of yourself," he pointed out. Karin eyed Ash, wondering what he meant. Contradicted Yuzu? That's when she figured that she had been more appreciative about this world.

"Can't I help it? Since meeting you, your girlfriends, these creatures..." Girlfriends? May and Misty, stunned by Karin's excuse with Ash's "girlfriends," turned to each other, then back at Karin. Was May and Misty Ash's girlfriends? Even Ash felt that it was a bit much to brag about.

"Misty and I can't really declare ourselves Ash's girlfriends," May denied. Then, if that's not the case, what is? "We prefer subtle acquaintances, right?" Ash, Misty, your answers?

"We're all really good friends, if not best friends," Ash provided. Karin seemed to have accepted that Ash had some pretty good friends to turn to...but decided to throw something into this mix.

"So, let's say that even if Yuzu and I return home, but I manage to come back here," she rambled. "Is it possible if I declare Ash as a boyfriend?" Whoa! Did not see that coming. Karin seemed to want Ash as more than a friend. However, it might not be about love. For sometime, Karin had noticed a rather strong spiritual energy that was emitting from the trainer. Misty, May and Max were shocked, as was Pikachu. They thought Karin had actually fallen for the youngster. Even Ash felt the gravitation of the confession.

"I...can't defend myself, can I?" Karin laughed at everyone's reaction to the proposal of being with Ash...like it was a joke.

"Man, you guys can be so gullible. Like heck that's gonna happen." Don't be so hasty. Ash felt needed to move on, wanting to show more creatures.

"Anyway, you ready to see more outside?" Max and May were excited to see more of what Ash had offered.

"Hey, I'm ready!" Max roared proudly. Hearing this confirmation, the youngsters proceeded to go outside. Meanwhile, Delia and Yuzu were walking to Prof. Oak's home, carrying green, bandit-style bags on their shoulders, full of heart-healthy berry sandwiches. Recently, it had turned out that a friend and co-Soul Reaper of Yuzu's brother, Rukia, was an aunt to Ash. In addition, Rukia's older brother, another Soul Reaper named Byakuya, was the father. Talk about more twists than a bag of pretzels.

"Oh, boy," Yuzu gleed. "The smell of the fruity sandwiches can make a mouth water. Where did you learn of such a recipe?" Delia seemed to have some knack with culinary arts. She didn't feel shy to reveal some techniques.

"Well, as the head chef/general manager at my diner in the outskirts on this town, I'm always thinking about new items to try for customers," she opened. "Heck, I helped out a restaurant in the Indigo Plateau when my son participated in his first tournament." She was quite the imaginative young mother to think up new dishes. Bet she has a lot of customers because of that. "What about your mother? Was she ever such a good cook that you followed?" Yeah, what about Yuzu, Karin and Ichigo's mother? Yuzu acted a grimace. Not really a good sign, and Delia noticed.

"You see, some years ago, our mom died, in front of Ichigo." Oh, no. Delia froze her feet, horrified that Yuzu and her siblings had to deal with the hardship of a motherless family and a widow-stricken father. "It happened in front of Ichigo. He said that some sort of demon came out and attacked him and Mom and before long, Mom's life was taken." A demon, like a Hollow? Delia showed above average sympathy for the loss of Yuzu's mother.

"I wish I could meet your bigger brother. It must have been extraordinary upsetting for him to lose a family member like that." Ever heard the saying, 'be careful what you wish for, because it may come true?' Well...

"Maybe, but I did get my payback," echoed...Ichigo? Yuzu and Delia turned to the sound...there he was! Ichigo came running to the two girls, one of which was excited to see big brother again.

"Ichigo!" Yuzu cheered as she ran to and hugged him. Ichigo wasn't anywhere close to being hot-blooded like when he fought that Hollow, or when he punted his father's face in, or when he decked Urahara for allowing that cursed Mary parasol to be taken.

"Hey, Yuzu. Where's Karin?"

"Up ahead, at the professor's lab." Delia got a good look at the stout Soul Reaper, in more of a street wardrobe.

"So, you're Ichigo Kurosaki?" Delia spoke. Ichigo looked up, grateful to be reunited with one sister, at least.

"Yeah, thanks for watching over my sisters, even Karin," Ichigo graced. "They can have wild adventures before I know it." Delia smiled, satisfied about helping friends with family. That's when Ichigo saw something weird about Delia. A light blue veil, the same veil that Karin saw in Ash, coated Delia like a cocoon. What's with this, now? 'This aura...this aura she has. It's the same aura that Uryū had when I first met him. So, there's a Quincy in this world. I would go into reaper mode and fight her, but she did care for Yuzu and Karin. Guess I can let her off.' A Quincy? Delia looked at Ichigo with that dazed face, wondering if everything was in order.

"You okay?" Hearing Delia, Ichigo broke from the sudden trance, shaking his head.

"Sorry. Lost in thought. Let's go and see Karin." Delia and Yuzu agreed with bobs of heads. Before they could take another step...

"Ichigo!" voiced...Rukia? Everyone shot eyes to...did the Soul Society come by for this? Rukia ran up, the cursed Mary parasol in hand. "We got trouble here!" Was that the reason she had a cool silver cellphone on hand? "There's a Hollow, about half a mile ahead, and this one's not a good soul." Hollow? Not a good soul? Delia became serious...not just because of her Quincy blood.

"That's by Prof. Oak's lab," she noted. In the same direction? No way was this a coincidence. "So, we're all going in the same direction." So, it appeared.

"Let's not idle," Ichigo motioned. Nods from all prompted the pursuit to go after the Hollow. Was Rukia aware that Delia was a Quincy? How about that this was probably her sister-in-law? Anyway, back at the lab, or outside, Ash and the rest toured the backyard of Oak's home. There were all sorts of creatures from white horses with fiery manes to large red crustaceans to even a blue mouse with a long nose and red spots on its back. Karin, Max and May acted as if they were in heaven. They enjoyed all these different Pokémon. They came to a blue-based hill with feet. No, seriously, why did this hill have bear feet? Well, it's because...it's a giant blue bear with a whitish mid-section...sawing logs.

"Whoa, this is your Snorlax, Ash?" Max awed. Snorlax?

"Sure is," Ash said. "Got it over at the Orange Islands, and it had been helpful, especially at that one sumo wrestling tournament." Misty seemed to remember that history...with some more tidbits.

"After winning the tournament, Snorlax did eat that year-long supply of food in mere seconds," she teased. A year-long supply? No wonder this bear had a mighty big stomach. The echoes of the kids entered Snorlax's ears which caused the sleepy Pokémon to awaken. Ash saw the beast rise to a seating position.

"Hey, Snorlax. Sorry to wake you like that." Snorlax didn't really mind. May was more of the same. She grabbed her red/white balls and threw them up.

"Come out and see this," she cheered as the balls opened. Three beams of light came out before they became creatures. One was mid-sized half-human/half-chicken with shady red eyes. Another was a stout round blue bear cub while the last one was another bulbed creature, but with a heart mark on its forehead. Karin saw the creatures, recognizing the bulbed creature.

"You've got a Bulbasaur, too?" she shrieked. May smirked with the whim of satisfaction. So did her Bulbasaur. Ash seemed to have noticed things from May that were not with her.

"Hey, May, where's your Beautifly and Skitty?" he wondered. She had more? Really?

"They're back at home," she replied. "Mom was overjoyed when I showed her my Beautifly. Considering that it reminded her with dad when they fell in love, I chose to let her watch over Beautifly, and when Skitty got into the greenhouse...forget it. I'll admit, I've never seen Skitty so mellow in such a controlled environment. They should be in good hands with my parents." Ash acted satisfied with her trust. The small bear and Snorlax locked opened eye to squinted eye, not quite rivaling off. More of a summarization. Karin and Max noticed the two.

"That's right," Max remembered. "Snorlax is the evolved form of Munchlax." Both Pokémon were related? That's new.

"Let me get this straight," Karin tried to understand. "This Munchlax will become a Snorlax soon enough?"

"That's right." Karin seemed awed. How could something like Munchlax become gargantuan as Snorlax? Before theories could be established...a screech was sounded from afar. Different creatures, running like a herd, were trying to speed away from possible trouble. Something was wrong.

"What's going on?" Ash questioned. Seeing the last of the Pokémon escape from the wooded area, the humans and Pikachu watched the trees for something.

"_**That's right,"**_ something echoed from the trees. **_"Rum, you scared mammals!"_** Ash and Karin heard the voice of something terrifying. That's when it appeared...a Hollow? In this world? Karin became overcome with fear. She was the only one to see it.

"Is something coming out?" Misty asked with worry. The Hollow saw the group. This could not be good.

"_**Ah...human morsels. I can finally have something other than pathetic creatures!"**_ He evilly laughed, prompting doom for the rest.

"What the heck is that doing here?" Karin gritted.

"I don't know, but it can't be good from his laugh," Ash growled. Karin looked toward Ash, thinking that Ash could see that Hollow as well.

'He can see the Hollow? Looks like I made the right choice in sticking with him.' She turned to the others, wanting to warn them of incoming action that's about to take place. "Guys, leave this to Ash and myself! Get back inside!" The rest weren't sure if they should put their beliefs in Karin and allow Ash to face something that was invisible. What could they do? With Ichigo, Rukia, Yuzu and Delia racing to the Hollow, could the now-known Quincy and Soul Reapers reach Ash in time? Could Ash awaken his Soul Reaper or Quincy blood to assist in his bout? Or even both and what consequences would be in store?

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...


	5. PokeBleach 5

_PokéBleach 5_

* * *

A Hollow had emerged in the Pokémon World. This was trouble. Ash and Karin faced the Hollow, more of a controlled fiend than the ones who gunned the Urahara Shop. It gazed upon the kids as creatures scattered, trying to escape the clutches of the Hollow. _**"Your souls have a unique flavoring that wets my appetite,"**_ it haunted. _**"For some reason, that boy's soul seems to be dashed with something. A new flavor, perhaps?"**_ Ash felt uneasy by the sound of the Hollow. He batted his eyes around, unable to find the Hollow.

"Get inside," he ordered the others. "He may be coming after you." Not wanting to hang their lives for this "shark" as bait, the others, including Pikachu, raced inside the lab. Cleared, Ash and Karin faced off with the Hollow, when Ash launched his confession. "Karin, you're gonna need to be my eyes for this." Karin was distraught. She thought Ash could see the Hollow as well as she did. However, she did go into thought mode in that moment. If Ash couldn't see the fiend, then how could he be aware of it's presence?

'He knows a Hollow is out there, but how if he's spiritually blind?' she pondered in her head. That's when she eyed Ash's ear, twitching like a pulse radar. That clicked an answer. 'That's it! He cant see, but he can hear him as clear as day. Fighting a Hollow by ear is more difficult than fighting by eyesight, but this Hollow...it's bringing back that incident with the boy in that bird. This Hollow is bad news.' To the Hollow, knowing that Ash couldn't see him became a benefit.

"_**So, you can hear me, but not see me,"**_ he sneered. _**"Not that I mind this handicap one bit. Oh, wait. Yes I can!"**_ Suddenly, another Hollow appeared, ready to swipe Ash with a backhand. Karin sensed the new Hollow behind her, turning to see the abundant strike.

"6:00!" Ash heard her, diving onto Karin to protect her, just as the Hollow swung. The punch smashed the ground, missing the trainer by inches. Ichigo, Rukia, Delia and Yuzu were arriving, but they may be too late. Ash gazed at the hole made by the Hollow, relieved that he wasn't crushed. The Hollow zipped toward the two again, another punch cocked. He swung. "6:00 again!" Ash shuffled his feet, slipping on soggy grass.

"_**Too slow!"**_ Desperate, Ash flipped a leg up. BAM! Ash's knee bounced the punch away from the two, crashing softly adjacent to them. Losing friction, Ash's twist carried his other leg up, the foot emitting the same aura that Ichigo picked up on Delia. The foot was a direct hit to the bone of the Hollow's mask, jerking his head a forced direction. In that instant, Ash got a look at the Hollow as it flashed from the kick. The Hollow flew a few feet from the kick.

'So...that's a Hollow!' Ash noticed. Yes, Ash, that's what Soul Reapers clean out. The Reaper and Ash returned their feet to the grassy ground. "Well, aren't you the definition of tall, dark and ugly?" The Hollow didn't seem too offended with the remark.

"_**Perhaps, but even you lack the talent to take me out!" **_the Hollow bellowed vastly. Undeterred, Ash flashed a smile as the Hollow laughed...only to notice the smile that meant the trainer was up to something.

"I lack talent. You know, it's kinda funny that some loser like yourself would resort to pointless insults when you have no reason to cause all this mischief." The Hollow glared meanly at Ash who began to glow more bluish than he realized. Almost immediately, the Hollow became unhinged in concern.

"_**That spiritual energy...I know that energy. That's spiritual energy of a Quincy." **_Ash was a Quincy? Well, Delia was a Quincy, so it wouldn't be too unusual for Ash to acquire something of that matter. _**"But there's something odd about you, I just can't put my finger on it."**_ Ash braced for what the Hollow had in store, but it should have been the Hollow who needed to prepare himself, because...

"Oh, you can't?" Ichigo voiced. The three looked up, Soul Reaper Ichigo present and ready to slice and dice with that giant "butcher knife" of his.

"Ichigo!" Karin hushed, seeing her big brother in that black samurai gown. Ichigo gazed sternly at the Hollow, confidence flowing in his head.

"Don't worry, Splitter, by the time you're done, you won't be knowing anymore." That Hollow had a name? That's a switch. Splitter stared Ichigo, biding time to decide on attacking Ash or the newcomer. Ash was glad to have some support, but he was going to need some more assistance.

"_**So, you know my identity, but how will that help when you know that I can do this!" **_Splitter grouched as he multiplied himself. Gathered like a triangle, six Splitters gazed at the three, fueling Ash into panic...and his spiritual energy to spike higher and higher. Ichigo and Karin noted the spike, thinking that Ash wanted to release it. Ichigo was having a hard time trying to determine if there were six Splitters or just one hidden in lifelike illusions.

'He disguised himself well. I can't find the real one.' What now? Ash couldn't hold back. If he was a Quincy, he needed to bring it out, now. He rushed in. To Ichigo, a bad decision. "You idiot! You're gonna get yourself killed!" Ash skidded, hands cupping air, except that ain't air forming in his hands. A ball of blue light enveloped. Not much, but Ash pushed it forward, banking left a bit. It struck the front Splitter in the air, but passed through. That's an illusionary Hollow. It hit the Splitter second-most left, blowing up on contact. Splitter raged a paining yell with the copies fading out of sight. More astonishing, the Hollow was more visible to the others. Yes, everyone who rushed in for safety saw the Hollow in person...and quite feared about it.

"Man, that's one ugly beast out there," Max gulped. That's not really a beast. Karin and Ichigo were astonished about Ash's use of ability.

"Is that what a Quincy's able to do?" Karin asked. Ichigo recalled the other Quincy, referring differences between them both.

"Well, Karin, a Soul Reaper exercises Hollows while Quincy kill the spirits of them, but in this case, this one needs to die," he explained. The whole death part was a bit extreme, but this Hollow needed to be ridden of.

"You got a plan?" Ash questioned. Ichigo had a plan, alright.

"Karin, go inside with Yuzu. We'll deal with Splitter." Getting out of danger seemed like a safe move, and Karin listened. She fulfilled her job for Ash, and now that the Hollow was seen by all, she retreated to the lab. Splitter just had to act up in defiance.

"_**Good, good!" **_he arrogantly bellowed. **_"Store them into one enclosed space so that I may devour their souls in one swallow!"_** The laughter tensed Ichigo's grip on his giant sword, but Ash tried to match defiance with his own. _**"I'll make sure that your souls aren't left in the air, as well."**_

"Oh, really?" he grinned. "You and what army?" Ash, you dolt! Splitter's laugh grew as he created more copies of himself, now up to a baker's dozen. Ichigo's scornful stare at Ash told the trainer/Quincy that he made a bad dare.

"You just had to say that, didn't you?" he groaned. Yeah, that was a dunderhead kind of move there. For some desired reason, Ash didn't act phased, as if he knew what his intentions were.

"Keep in mind, this Hollow's talent is creating illusionary duplicates of himself. So, if I'm not mistaken, the only one who can hurt us is the real deal, not these copies." Let's hope Ash was right. Ichigo softened a chuckle, humored by the trainer's beliefs.

'Like mother, like son.' Definitely. The energy reformed around Ash's hands as the copies raced after the two. Suddenly, a storm of glowing blue boomerangs flew out of nowhere, slicing through the duplicates and exploding on contact with each boomerang/Splitter meeting. There was one more Splitter that got a boomerang, but didn't vanish like the rest. Instead, it got a burn between the black eyes of the hollow mask. Splitter screeched in agony, feeling the power of that blast. It staggered back a few yards. Ash and Ichigo wondered where all those boomerangs emerged from. They wouldn't need to look, but listen.

"Ash, you alright?" Delia yelled down to the two. Both Ash and Ichigo looked to Delia on Prof. Oak's rooftop, spotting her. Did she throw all those boomerangs?

"Mom?" Ash wondered as she leaped down from the roof, landing on the soft field. The three human were facing Splitter, who's still wondering about that series of Hollow-clearing explosions.

"_**Now, this is unfair,"**_ he complained. **_"A Soul Reaper and mother/son Quincy duo?"_** Delia was quick to explain the details.

"My son is not just a Pokémon Master in training, and he's no ordinary Quincy, either," she stated. "For you see, Ash Ketchum is a hybrid." Hybrid, indeed. His father was a Soul Reaper and Delia was a Quincy. Ash seemed puzzled with this piece of information.

"A hybrid?" he repeated.

"I'll tell you, later, okay?" Ash agreed, knowing that Splitter had to be dealt with, first. Like a professional scout of a sports club, Ash analyzed what Splitter had been displaying.

"This Hollow is overusing trickery, meaning that anyone who can see a Hollow or many Hollows will think that they'll be ambushed. We need to rely on sound in order to locate the real Hollow instead of eyesight." Good plan, but Splitter didn't mind Ash's little study.

"_**Even with that short lesson, I'll have my revenge on you, for good,"**_ he goaded. Revenge? Even Ichigo had to ask about that.

"Revenge?" he copied.

"_**Revenge, indeed. I still remember that brat stopping me from capturing Celebi!"**_ Celebi? Ash suddenly remembered something familiar that Splitter brought up.

"You-you mean..?" he stuttered.

"_**You know exactly what I mean, you runt. I was that iron masked Rocket when I was sent to capture that Celebi. You and your friends came by and ruined everything, even my way of returning to my own time in the future. I was nicknamed Splitter after you and your Pikachu split my mask in half, exposing my face and shame. Humiliated beyond recognition, I wandered around, recklessly killing creatures and humans, some after raping them, until I overstepped and fell off a cliff to my doom. As soon as I realized I became a Hollow with extraordinary powers, I used it to slay more of those worthless people. Now that I've found you, I can finally earn my payback."**_ Oh, god. Ash, Delia and Ichigo were all horrified with the dark tale of the aftermath of Ash's stoppage of this fiendish soul before and after his death. The raping, the murdering of many...blood began to boil hotter than a preheated oven.

"You bastard!" Ichigo growled feverishly. Delia was just as, if not more, angered by Splitter and his wake of devastation. Ash found something that made him laugh. What was it?

"I get it," he huffed. Ichigo and Delia looked at Ash, stepping forward and confronting the murderous fiend. "I finally get it. I finally get that you are nothing more than a sad excuse to pain payback for your undoing, and a far cry to your pathetic cowardliness." Ouch. Ash hit a sensitive spot that Splitter felt.

"_**You insolent child! Watch your mouth!"**_

"Uh, no." Splitter's seething could be felt. He wanted no more of Ash's tongue. "You are such a sore loser." If Splitter had a weakness, Ash exposed it.

"_**Shut the hell up!" **_Splitter fired a fist at Ash, who seemed to be forming a ball in his hand.

"Ash, look out!" Delia screamed. Ash raised his hand to intercept Splitter's punch. Hand met fist. KABOOM! An explosion. The blast came from the hand/fist clash with smoke billowing. Splitter screamed in more pain. His arm...blown clean off up to the shoulder! Damn, that had to hurt!

"_**You son of a bitch! How dare you blow my arm off! I'm gonna kill you dead!" **_Splitter's other arm was raised when Ichigo raced inward. He swung the arm, but Ash ducked the swing as Ichigo leaped off Ash's back, also dodging the attack. He came down, slicing the big Hollow across the mask. More and more screams Splitter yelled as he began to disintegrate...or so it started to look as Rukia and Orihime, holding the cursed Mary Parasol, arrived to see the end of the Hollow. Splitter wasn't disintegrating, but a beam of light shot into the air. That's when the skies became dark while the rest filed out of the lab. In a flash, from the ground below, a black door appeared. This door had skeleton tops with wraps around their skulls and chains to the doors keeping it shut tight...all appearing behind Splitter. They all looked at the door, concerned about what could possibly happen. Ash braced himself for anything evil to come out. Rukia came forward to Ash, placing a hand to her yet-to-know nephew's shoulder, causing him to look at the new Reaper.

"Don't worry," she motioned. "They're the gates to Hell." That's something to worry about. "But they're only opening for him." Oh. That's much better. The chains began to break off. "The zanpaktō, that we Soul Reapers carry, can only cleanse the sins that a soul has committed as a Hollow. Those who commit crimes while alive..." Ash decided to finish his apparent aunt's description.

"They won't ever see the light, again," he guessed.

"Correct. They go straight to Hell." What a way to go. The doors opened as Splitter was unaware of his sealed fate. Without warning, a sword flashed and skewered Splitter near his waists. The sword dragged Splitter into the doorway as the doors began to close. The doors closed. Hell had another soul to torture for all eternity, and with the gate closed, business was completed. The doors began to crackle. Filled with cracks, the gates popped into a million pieces, scattering across the lands. The episode was over. "Good riddance." The skies brightened back to normal, but Ash was weak. He fell to his knees, seemingly out of whack. Then, he collapsed fully, falling on the grass unconscious. Everyone saw Ash hit the dirt with an unhealthy thud.

"Ash!" all shouted, panicked with what may have been. They shook him, patted him, but nothing. Then, out of nowhere, another Soul Reaper appeared. The raven-haired man was wearing white samurai gown with black sleeves and pants and bearing a Japanese logo on his back. He also had a white zig-zag decoration in his hair. Ichigo, Rukia and Delia saw him, standing back away from Ash as he approached the large group.

"Brother, what are you doing here?" Rukia's brother? Byakuya? He looked toward Delia, who didn't appear deterred. What for?

"It's been a long time since we saw each other, Delia," he mentioned. Delia acknowledged his motion.

"It has, dear Byakuya," she said. Rukia acted perplexed. She had no idea what was going on. Then again, no one had a clue about it. Byakuya looked down at Ash, interested with this hybrid that Delia told Splitter.

"So, this is our son, isn't it?" W-w-what?! Byakuya's son? Rukia and the Kurosaki siblings were shocked with this news. Ash was the son of a Soul Reaper and a Quincy. Rukia showed surprise beyond the rest of the current cast.

"Brother, are you saying that this boy is your child?" she questioned. Byakuya bobbed his head, provoking others to the stuns of dismay.

"See that he recovers." Orihime and Misty nodded, saying that they'll make sure Ash is treated. "Sorry I can't stay long. It's nice to know that my son is strong and well." Then, he walked away, disappearing in the distance. Okay... Rukia still couldn't believe that Ash was her brother's son.

"I can't believe it," she hushed. "This boy is my nephew. I'm an aunt." The truth was out. Right now, getting Ash inside was more vital. He was exhausted to a point.

"Let's get Ash inside the lab and make sure he gets rest," May suggested. Tracy and Ichigo carried Ash into the lab as Misty, Karin and Yuzu watched, still deterred from the knowledge of Ash being the son of a Soul Reaper and Quincy.

"To think, he had this power for all this time," Misty awed. "I believe when he heard of the slaughtered Pokémon, he went over the edge. He's very caring with Pokémon." He was. The sisters believed her, knowing how much energy erupted from Ash from that information. They joined the rest inside, wanting to hear how Delia, a Quincy, made love to Byakuya, a Soul Reaper. Wouldn't we all know?

* * *

TO BE CONCLUDED...


	6. PokeBleach 6

_PokéBleach 6_

* * *

Ash, the son of a Soul Reaper and a Quincy. No one had any idea that a hybrid as such would exist. Ash's eyes were starting to open, spotting Orihime looking over him. He was in a bed, his own pretty doubtful. "You okay, Ash?" she asked wholeheartedly. Ash's movements were retarding, thanks to that fight with an evil Hollow, Splitter.

"Still drained," he groaned. Ash wanted to rise up, but Orihime gently put his head back on the pillow. To her, Ash was in no condition to move around.

"Don't push yourself. You did exhaust a lot of your spiritual energy out there." Ash felt more defeated than his record as a trainer showed. Then, there was a knock at the door. Orihime and Ash twisted heads to the door, wondering who was visiting. "Come in!" Rukia, back in street clothes, opened the door, seeing Ash, her now-known nephew, as well as the redhead.

"Ash, how are you feeling?" she asked the same thing. Ash just huffed a chuckle, like he was going to be okay. "Well, your spiritual energy will need some time to recover. Still, I can't believe I have family here, much less someone who's got the spiritual blood of a Quincy and the fighting capabilities of a Soul Reaper." Family? Ash had no such hint that he and Rukia were related.

"What do you mean 'family?'" he wondered. The carrier with a dock full of bombshells had arrived for this moment.

"It's very unusual, but you see, I'm Rukia Kuchiki, your aunt." Ash's jaw plummeted further than a pin drop. Ash couldn't fathom the fact that Rukia was his aunt, even though she just said so.

"My...aunt?" Even though this was true, Rukia still felt that this was far fetched to understand.

"Delia was going to tell us about how she and my brother created you." As if Ash's energy had a boost, he rose out of the bed, but relented on speed, making sure he didn't strain himself. He was interested with his mother's story of his making. Orihime was still wanting Ash to ease up, but knowing that he was moving like before, it seemed pointless.

"I'm willing to know about how my mom became a Quincy and how she and your brother met, Ruk- Aunt Ruki." Aw, Aunt Ruki. It's cute. Rukia grinned, appreciating the concept that Ash acknowledged her as family. The three walked down the stairs to where everyone else was, except for Ash's father, Byakuya, and Splitter, spending the rest of his afterlife in Hell. It appeared that there was another story in the process.

"I can tell you, it was close during the rescue," Ichigo summed up his story. Who was the victim? The others were a bit terrified with the tale. Karin and Yuzu couldn't believe that their bother would go to such great lengths to rescue someone. Delia saw another reason.

"It's good to know that Uryū is doing well," she stated. Uryū? "Last I saw him was when he was an infant, I took care of a few times before the war." A war? Between who? That's when Karin saw Ash entering the fray of verbals.

"Ash, you stud!" she cheered as she hopped over to him. Both fist-bumped each other, a sign of well-being. "Man, seeing you blow off that Hollow's arm was really cool!" Ash remembered that part well. Of course, the cursing we'd all like to forget. Yuzu was a bit concern about Ash being back on his feet so suddenly since that united battle.

"You sure you wanna get moving after that fight with the Hollow?" she expressed her fear. Ichigo wasn't as worried as the rest were.

"He's a tough kid," he teased with a stymie grin. "Let him walk." Feeling the superb trust, Ash joined the rest for Delia's story time. He sat by Misty as Karin hopped onto his lap. She had been taking a strong look toward Ash since waking from the incident in the Urahara Shop. Even Ichigo batted an eye to that. "Why must you hang on to him like you do?" Karin shrugged her shoulders, like her big brother was getting into her business.

"Are you saying that I can't enjoy a guy like Ash?" she argued. Well, can't she?

"I'd trust my nephew more than Jinta," Rukia opinionated. Even Rukia sided with Karin. To Delia, this was a bit of comedy, a relief from the recent battle. Her giggle got the other siblings, Max and May, to wonder if everything was okay.

"You're just eating this up, aren't you?" May mumbled. Come on, May. This was the time to relax.

"Oh, come on, May," Delia continued to laugh. "After what happened at the ranch, we all need a good laugh." They did need a chuckle or two. Pikachu sat on Delia's lap, considering Karin occupied Ash's. Misty was wanting to know how Delia and Byakuya met up. She was a bit anxious for that.

"Mrs. Ketchum, since Ash is up and around, I'm ready to hear how you and that Soul Reaper made love," she voiced. Everyone geared themselves for the story of attractive opposites. Delia, herself, braced herself for what reactions may boil out.

"As you already know, I'm a Quincy. The only thing that the Quincy and Soul Reapers have in common is hunting Hollows. On hindsight, that's what separates us. When a Soul Reaper defeats a Hollow, the evil spirit is exercised from the soul who can rise to Heaven. When a Quincy defeats a Hollow, everything, even the soul of the deceased, is gone."

* * *

_Delia's Flashback (Delia's view)_

_To say that I was born a Quincy would justify my powers. However, my behavior, at first...a disregard for common sense and safety. I never listened to my parents, thus explaining my recklessness. I wandered everywhere, the same way Ash journeys around, even going to a few Quincy training grounds. When I was Karin's age, or Yuzu's, whichever you prefer, I hung out with a few of my friends on the hillside of one of those grounds, challenged to perform my powers, preferably my boomerangs. "Why must you agree to one of Kenzu's dares, Delia?"a blue-haired female friend named Chiyu groaned to the challenge. Yeah, I was a daring girl._

"_Hey, if anyone's gonna show up Kanzu, it'll be me," I proudly gloated. "Just stand back and watch me work." All of my friends watched, hoping that I'd screw up somehow. Already I was, because there were Quincy in training with archery, the more common tool for us. They had to have been some of the more advanced members, considering that the targets were small._

"_If you succeed, you can gloat twice as much, because those targets don't appear any bigger than half a meter around and that we're about 300 yards from one." That's right, they were _that_ small and _that_ far of targets. Undaunted, I fired my boomerang, traveling the long distance. When the boomerang passed by the target, Chiyu began to freak out, thinking I was aiming for one of the training warriors. But I had a boomerang, meaning that it was bound to return. Well, it started to come back around, hitting the bullseye. To Chiyu, it was to much to believe. For myself, it was common ground._

"_See?" None of the training members understood what just came by. However, my throw didn't go unnoticed. One of the instructors came by that area, not happy about what I did. Instead, he was intrigued. He told me that I was a prodigy with my unique Quincy powers. So, instead of being disciplined, I was being taught on how to control my powers for when I could go out and hunt for Hollows. Then it happened. A war clashed with us Quincy and the Soul Reapers. It was a disagreement between both sides with the Reapers calling us spiritual murderers. Not that we tried to agree on the subject. One of our generals chose me, even though I had no previous fighting background. I had no idea that I was skilled with fighting, because I managed to take out eight, maybe nine of the Reapers my first time out. The next day, my general assigned me to a reconnaissance squadron, hoping to go after the leaders of the 13-Court squads. Before we reached one of them, we were ambushed. In the panic, I ran off from my squad...and into the zanpaktō of Byakuya Kuchiki, first squad general. We charged inward, when the ground beneath us collapsed. We fell about 150 feet, normally one fall that would claim a normal human life, but we made our two-point landings. We squared off again, but never fought. That was interrupted by a few ruthless Hollows, like the one Ash and Ichigo fought._

"_Hollows with evil souls," he detected. It was the first time that I had seen a Hollow, less three. I was scared, but Byakuya wasn't. He sprinted forward._

"_Don't! You fool!" My words fell on his deaf ears. The Hollows were overpowering him, making me have to act, despite my fears. I fired rounds and rounds of my boomerangs, vaporizing two of them. Byakuya recovered his step for a second, only to hack the skull of the last Hollow. That's when the gates were revealed. It swallowed that last evil spirit into the doors. When the door vanished, Byakuya fell, badly injured from that beating. I applied aid to my enemy, a direct violation that would result in execution._

"_You dare assist an enemy of the Quincy?" I didn't see Byakuya as an enemy. I saw him for a helping hand._

"_It was the first time I saw a Hollow. I panicked and you helped me." Byakuya sensed that I was honest. I also revealed what I was told about the Hollows. "I heard that Hollows were anomalies that hunt for human souls recklessly." That's when he told me the truth._

"_Hollows are wicked spiritual creatures that corrupt pure souls to cause malice and destruction. As a Soul Reaper, our zanpaktō exercise the Hollow spirits from the souls and send those who are pure to the beyonds." That made me think back to the three that attacked us. They acted as if they were in control of the Hollows, not vice-versa._

"_But those three seemed to be running those Hollows." Even Byakuya knew it. One was sent beyond the gates._

"_They had to have committed cruel sins while existing. No surprise that the last one was sent to Hell." We understood each other, despite being from opposite sides. That night, we made love. The next day, Byakuya knew that I had to be hidden from the other Quincy, meaning I had to be away from babysitting Uryū Ishida, who I watched over for a year while his parents were on missions. Byakuya sent me to this world, thanks to certain connections and promised me to call him if there was a Hollow near me. When I arrived at Pallet Town, I vomited. It was then, I knew I was pregnant with Ash. After Prof. Oak helped me to the living conditions and finding me a home to live, Ash was born. For the ten years, I hid the fact that Byakuya was a Soul Reaper by telling Ash that his father went out to become a Pokémon trainer. On the first day of Ash's adventures, I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that I couldn't say it in front of his face about the truth. I wanted to tell him when he was old enough to walk into an adult store about his father._

_(End View)_

* * *

"Instead, that Hollow provoked you to explain this now?" Ash realized. Delia nodded, confirming Ash's understanding. Although Delia told the story, disbelief and dismay shrouded throughout the room.

"Talk about unfathomable," Birch hushed in amazement. Yeah, it was outrageously hard to believe that Delia and Byakuya became a sudden couple during a war. Karin clung toward Ash in her own dismay, not sure if she should go with Delia's wording. However, Ichigo thought about the tale, something making perfect sense to him.

"I see now," he spoke up. Everyone darted attentions to the strawberry-blond man, hoping to clarify the story.

"What is it, Ichigo?" Misty wondered. A minute of thinking brought up this.

"Well, recently, I had gone to the Soul Society to rescue Rukia from being executed for deliberately donating her Reaper abilities to me after she was injured fighting a Hollow. I ended up fighting Byakuya, who stubbornly stuck with the decision of allowing Rukia to die. I, now, realized that he was doing so to make up for making out with you, trying not to fight the system and staying on the Society's terms." It rung in clearer than a crystal ball. Being a leader, Byakuya was strict to the laws of the Society.

"He was the punctual one," Delia giggled. Misty, May and Max gazed upon Ash, knowing that he had powers that could prove useful in the future.

"Well, I'm actually glad that there's someone who could protect us from anymore haunting attacks," Max joked. Misty and May believed that Max would want to abuse Ash's newly discovered abilities...or someone on other boundries.

"If Team Rocket finds out that Ash has these powers, they wouldn't dare go after Pikachu again," May hypothesized. How about that, a protective weapon to assist the rest. Ash seemed to like the idea, but his mind wandered about something else.

"Of course, none of this would've been researched if it hadn't been that Mary parasol," he reviewed. When he mentioned the cursed parasol, he hadn't seen it for himself. "Come to think of it, I haven't really had a chance to scope the parasol. You don't mind, do you Aunt Ruki?" Rukia, tossed the cursed rain-guard to Ash. In a flash, Ash caught it in midair. "That was a quick throw." As if the magic word was spoken, the parasol began to morph in a cocoon of light. The blinding light caused all but Ash to cover their eyes. For a minute, the light was too much, but it did dim down significantly. Before long, the glow stopped, having everyone turn to Ash- Whoa! What the heck was a sword doing in Ash's hand? The sword was long, about five feet, but there was something unorthodox about it. One side of the large sword was solid silver steel, while the other side was a clear, see-through crystal blade. Here's the kicker about the other side: there was a blue light that acted as liquid to a cup, because the light covered a small portion of the crystal. What's with that? Everyone gawked stunned faces toward the sword. Ichigo saw the blade, thinking that it was a blade that she owned.

"You've gotta be kidding!" he shrieked. "A zanpaktō?" Ash had a zanpaktō? Rukia thought the same thing, until the blue light reconfigured her ploy.

"It's a clasher sword," she named it. "The sword of a hybrid from a Quincy and Soul Reaper." How could a cursed parasol become a sword fit for a hybrid? Ash examined the sword, himself, taking further looking into the blue light.

"Is that...my spiritual energy?" he guessed. It might be.

"That's your Quincy spiritual energy," Delia replied. "It seems that some of your energy was restored from that rest." Talk about an unusual sword, and for Ash to have it...wow. Now, there was a new problem: how to tell Urahara about his missing cursed parasol being a clasher sword? It didn't bother anyone anymore, now that Ash knew what to do with it.

"I think I'll keep it locked up in my room until another Hollow likes to try and trash the town." Everyone agreed to the idea. They didn't really think Ash needed a powerful sword to lag around during his trips. By now, Ichigo was ready to head home.

"I guess that everything is back to normal," he stretched as he turned to Karin and Yuzu. "What do you say about heading home? Dad's not in his good mood when you two disappeared." No duh! You knocked him out when he lunged for Orihime's buxom bust. Rukia approved on the idea, thinking that they spent enough time here.

"I agree," she murmured. It was nice that I got to know distant family members. Too bad we couldn't stay long." No one mind. "Thanks for your hospitality and taking care of the sisters." Oak smiled, accepting the praise.

"Hey, you're all welcomed to come visit whenever you like," he offered. Karin didn't like to go away from Ash, but her father had to be watched over, as well as keeping Yuzu safe. But there was the offer and she seemed to like the idea.

"Well, in that case," she echoed before...Wow! She got Ash in the lips! Not a punch, a pinch or a pile-driver, but a kiss to the lips! Did Karin have deep feelings for Ash? Ichigo was speechless.

"K-k-k-k-Karin, what the-?" he fidgeted. Rukia acted a lot calmer, thinking that her nephew earned that kiss.

"Well, someone got the love bug bite," she teased. Rukia, Delia and the professors laughed at the fortune Ash enveloped. When they separated, both gazed in each other's faces smiling. Nice one, Karin. Joining, the visitors waived bye as they walked away, on their way back home. Misty stared at Ash, still feeling the affection of Karin.

"So, how did it feel, Ash?" Misty sneered. Ash glared with a sneer of his own, not intimidated by her smart-mouth remark.

"I'll let you know the next time I see her," he answered. Would they meet in the future?

* * *

_Months later..._

Ash and Pikachu were at a boat docking port, getting ready to board a vessel, ready to head off into another adventure. "The Sinnoh region awaits," Ash pumped up. The next voyage was somewhere in the far distance. Pikachu was raring to go and get stronger. As they waited for a boat, they had no idea about someone coming from behind. Three figures.

"Ash!" echoed from the back. Ash turned around, seeing Karin, Ichigo...and Byakuya, who hasn't changed out of that uniform. Finally, Ash had his chance to meet his father for the first time.

"Hello...son," Byakuya mumbled. Ash smiled, not scared of his old man. That's what you call backbone.

"How's it going, dad?" he replied. Karin came up, wrapping her arms around Ash in a hug. Ash nearly stumbled from the lunging hug, but kept more than his composure straight. "Hey, Karin. You're looking great." Karin's smile brightened almost to the point of blindness.

"I missed you, and wanted to wish you luck on your next adventure," she motioned. Appreciating the praise, Ash petted Karin's hair, messing it up a notch.

"Thanks, and I'll take it as far as possible." In reply, Karin flung herself onto Ash's face, kissing him again. He was about to leave and this was his parting gift. Ash Ketchum...Quincy, Soul Reaper, trainer...all in one. There was no equal like that ever. Ash was considered one of a kind.

* * *

THE END


End file.
